Five times Skull was injured and the one time the Arcobaleno were
by Swindled-Ink
Summary: As said in the title. Skull centric! For howlingblackwolf who requested something like this.
1. Chapter 1

The Arcobaleno, aside from Skull, were enjoying a rare moment of peace where nearly all of them were free from contracts. They were bundled up in the living room watching a movie with the fireplace burning fiercely when the front door to the manor was slammed open by a massive octopus that was writhing its tentacles in distress. Reborn narrowed his eyes and smoothly stalked over to Skull's pet, the Arcobaleno shadowing him.

Oodako moved before the worried Arcobaleno reached her and Skull's limp body was revealed to the group. "Verde, get the lab ready," Reborn snapped as he ran around the shrinking octopus with Sun flame-coated hands and gently touched the unconscious Cloud.

Fon knelt by Skull's head and softly pulled bloodied hair back from his face to reveal a large gash covering his forehead. "He has a head wound Reborn," Fon alerted the hitman and began to search through the purple hair to see if there were any more head wounds.

Colonello activated his Rain flames and they began curling around the weak Cloud flames in an attempt to soothe Skull's bruised and battered body. "Viper, I need a stretcher," Reborn ordered as he let his flames flicker away, "There's nothing I can do here."

A stretcher was quickly materialised, and Viper hovered next to Reborn as he moved Skull onto the board with the Rain's help. "What's wrong with him?" They asked in a monotonously, although looking closely would show that they were close to panicking.

A grim pull of Reborn's lip gave away the answer, "Let's just say he's lucky that he didn't break something important."

"I'm going to go help Verde with the supplies," Fon called out as he began walking briskly away, eyes flashing bright red every few seconds.

Skull's eyes squeezed shut and he let out an agonized moan as the mist-created board was gently floated into the air. Dazed amethyst eyes were shown in slivers, "O-Oodako."

"She's fine Skull, kora," Colonello told the Cloud as they slowly made their way to the Infirmary.

Skull turned confused, "Colonello? Where am I?"

"You managed to get back to the mansion," Reborn cut into the conversation, "Do you have a headache?"

"I think so…" Skull trailed off and his eyes fluttered shut.

Reborn firmly tapped his Lackey on the cheek that wasn't bruised, "You need to stay awake. Do you understand Skull?"

"Yeah," Skull sighed turning his head to look at the Rain who was on his right, "Where's Oodako?"

"Back at the entrance but she's fine Skull," Colonello murmured to the limp teen.

Skull blinked, "Oh. Where am I?"

Colonello looked to Reborn in confusion, "We told you. You're at the Arcobaleno mansion."

"Really?" Skull questioned, "Oodako?"

Reborn sent Colonello a sharp shake as he answered Skull, "Your octopus is fine. I need you to stay awake and be quiet for me okay?"

"Alright," Skull agreed, and he began to stare at the moving ceiling with dazed eyes.

"I thought you said that he was okay?" Colonello hissed at the Sun.

Reborn glared at the Rain, "I said quote unquote he's lucky he didn't break anything important. I said nothing about his head injuries as far as I can recall."

"What's wrong with his head?" The sniper glanced at Skull to make sure the Cloud was still awake.

The hitman wavered, "He has a really bad concussion, hence why I didn't exactly want to move him with Mist flames."

"If you've finished, we're here," Viper intoned as they carefully set Skull down on the bed Verde prepared.

Verde was laying out every single ointment, antibiotic, surgery supplies and more after Fon sterilized the metals with his Storm flames. "Anyone who isn't knowledgeable in medicine can get out of the way, except for you Fon, I might need you," Reborn ordered after Viper stood back.

"Set up an IV with 10mg of Propofol," Reborn started as he began stripping Skull down to his boxers.

Verde raised an eyebrow as he started the IV kit, "Why Propofol? I would have thought we would have needed him out for longer."

"There is no internal bleeding and aside from dealing with broken bones and a concussion there's nothing else to fix," Reborn said as he waited for the Propofol to take effect, "Someone go and get Skull one of his metabolism bars, two water bottles and something light to eat."

Colonello left the room just as the drugs in the IV started affecting Skull and Reborn focused back on his impromptu patient. He swept Skull with his flames once more to double check the placements of the breaks before speaking. "He has three broken ribs on his right side and two cracked on the other. His left wrist is fractured as well as his ankle, and his right arm is broken in two places," Reborn rattled off as he began amassing his powerful Sun flames.

"Again, is Propofol really the best choice here?" Verde questioned with a slightly hysterical tone.

Yellow-wreathed hands rest on Skull's broken arm and begin to heal the bone, "Have you forgotten that his Cloud flames actively seek to heal his injuries? Skull's ribs will be healed within the next hour and I can deal with everything else before he wakes, aside from the concussion anyway."

Fon moved to the side as Verde pushed past him to deal with the unnecessary medical tools, "Was there a reason you wanted me to stay here Reborn?"

"You can leave now," Reborn said brusquely as he focused on Skull, "I wasn't sure whether Skull was poisoned or not until now."

Fon discreetly smiled at the distracted Sun and shifted away from the bed, "I'll assure the others then."

Reborn hummed faintly as he shifted his hands to Skull's wrist and didn't look up when Fon walked over to where the other Arcobaleno were sitting and looking worriedly at the Cloud. "He's fine," Fon confirmed as he sat next to Viper and the newly-returned Colonello, "Nothing he won't be able to shake off in a few days."

"The concussion?" Viper asked as they had overheard Skull's conversation with Colonello.

Fon thought about it for a minute, "Reborn didn't seem too worried about it. I think that once Skull's flames have finished healing his ribs then they will redirect to his head wound."

"That's what Reborn wants to happen," Verde confirms as he too walked over, "It's why he wants to heal Skull's other injuries, so the flames will automatically redirect to his head trauma."

Reborn took a step back from the bed and sunk into the chair opposite of Skull. Seeing as the hitman was done, the other Arcobaleno rushed over and waited for answers, Verde being the exception as he stopped to grab a bottle of aspirin and one of the water bottle's Colonello gathered. "Another one of the reasons why I didn't want you to put him under for such a short time," Verde remarked as he handed over the painkillers and water to the pale Sun.

"Shut up," Reborn grumbled as he dry-swallowed the pills and ignored the water, "He's fine now by the way. I don't think he'll wake up though, his body was on the brink of exhaustion."

Viper conjured a chair to sit in and shut their eyes for a short sleep after they dared the others to wake them with a glare filled with Mist flames. Colonello placed the food and other water bottle on the bedside table and dragged chairs over for the others before pulling out a book he wanted to finish and settled in for a long wait.

"Don't think you're getting off this easily Reborn," Verde warned, "On the other bed now and go to sleep. Your flames are exhausted."

Reborn protested, "No they aren't! I've healed much worse before."

Verde raised an eyebrow, "With more time, yes. Now get on the bed before I make you."

"Fine," Reborn pouted as he moved onto the bed adjacent to Skull and closed his eyes, "Happy?"

Verde nodded, "Very."

XXXXXX

"It's mine," Viper hissed as Colonello reached for the strawberry milk. They gave the Rain a terrifying smile when he yanked his hand away in fear.

Colonello groaned, "Why do you even like that stuff? Ginger beer is way better."

The Mist gave Colonello a patronizing stare, "And you were going to drink it because?"

"I'm bored," whined the sniper as he looked at Reborn reading his discarded book. "Is he going to wake up soon?" Colonello asked the Sun.

As if scripted, Skull gave a low moan as he began to slowly return to consciousness. "There's your answer," Reborn said condescendingly as he walked over to Skull.

"Reborn?" Skull groaned as he probed the room with his flames.

"That's Sempai to you Lackey," Reborn smirked as the Cloud's eyes slowly opened and landed on his figure.

Fon gave the healing Cloud a gentle smile, "It is nice to hear your voice again Skull."

"Where's Oodako?" Skull asked when he didn't see his partner.

Colonello shook his head in denial, "We are not going through this again, kora!"

"He's fine you idiot," Reborn rolled his eyes at the Rain's antics, "Oodako is resting in her tank at the moment."

Skull nodded, not fully awake yet until he blinked and sat up quickly, "How did I get here? The last thing I remember was…"

"As far as we know, Oodako carried you here," Viper commented as they floated by Skull's bed. "Where were you?" They questioned before Skull could get side-tracked.

Skull gave an awkward laugh, "The guys who gave me the information for my mission lied to me. They said there was only three guards around the place when it was more like twenty."

"This is why we tell you not to take missions Skull," Verde gave an exasperated sigh and rubbed his forehead.

A sheepish smile was thrown Verde's way, "I know but a contact of mine said they were pretty good. They won't sell me out, so I guess it's because of our old title that was the reason I was backstabbed like this."

"They sold you out because you were an Arcobaleno," Fon said in a mild tone, "What are their names?"

Skull grimaced at the look on the Storm's face, "Antonio Vargas and Feliciano Fernandes."

"They're mine," Fon warned the others with a red shine entering his eyes.

The Cloud sighed at Fon's overprotectiveness, "Why are all of you so protective towards me."

"You're our lackey," Reborn growled at the bemused Cloud.

Colonello nodded, "Don't ever forget it, kora!"

"Now lay back and eat the salad Fon made you," Viper ordered.

Skull sent a pleading look towards Verde, "You aren't going to leave me with them, are you?"

"What are you talking about?" Verde asked over his shoulder as he started to walk towards the doors, "I'm sure you'll be fine."

Skull panicked, "Verde, no! Don't leave me with them, I beg you!"

"Bye Skull," Verde called out as he exited the Infirmary. He smirked at the tortured cries of the Cloud. That would teach him to eat the last of Fon's cookies.


	2. Chapter 2

I don't have any ideas yet for two of the planned chapter, so if you want to suggest something comment below!

Reborn glared at the small straw in his hand as the other Arcobaleno laughed at him. "Keep laughing and you won't be enjoying dinner tonight," The hitman growled as he made his way to the kitchen.

"What happened to your well of luck, kora," Colonello cackled.

Verde looked up from the sofa, "It is impossible to have a 'well of luck' as you call it. Luck is simply- "

"Okay, got it Verde," Colonello groaned as Verde started his lecture.

Verde glared at the Rain and turned to leave the room, "At least I'm not some uneducated moron."

"What did you say, kora!" Colonello yelled and ran after the hastily retreating Lightning.

Fon raised an eyebrow at the two elements as they ran past him and entered the sleek kitchen serenely. "Am I to assume that you were picked to make dinner this time, Reborn?" He asked as he poured water into the kettle.

"Don't even start Fon," Reborn grumbled as he set about the kitchen, gathering herbs and spices.

Fon discreetly hid a smile as he reached for his tea leaves, "It was bound to happen sometime."

"Skull cheated," Reborn sulkily replied.

The Cloud squawked from the other room, "How could I fool _you_ senpai?!"

"See what I mean?" Reborn asked and levelled a stare at an amused Fon.

The Storm couldn't stop a laugh from escaping and ignored Reborn with an experienced ease. The kettle whistled, and he quickly turned the stove off and poured the hot water into his mug. "Look on the bright side Reborn, at least Verde isn't cooking again," Fon said sagely.

"He's not allowed to cook ever again," Reborn deadpanned as he thought back to the disastrous dinner.

 _"_ _Verde," Reborn said blankly._

 _The scientist glanced up from his plate, "Yes Reborn?"_

 _"_ _What is this?" The hitman asked slowly._

 _Skull walked into the dining room and screeched, "I am so not eating that! Please don't tell me you're going to Reborn senpai."_

 _"_ _Shut up Lackey," Reborn scowled as the Cloud warily backed away._

 _Verde pushed his glasses up, "I don't see anything wrong with the food. It's Spaghetti Bolognese Reborn."_

 _"_ _How the hell is this even considered food?" Colonello muttered as he gave up on trying to eat dinner and started rummaging around the fridge._

 _On Reborn's plate was purple, jelly-looking worms that vomited green juice everywhere. Fon took one glance at what Verde had made and shut down, "Does everyone agree to not letting Verde cook dinner ever again?"_

 _"_ _That isn't even dinner," Skull rebutted as he nodded rapidly._

 _The others let out sounds of agreement as Verde sat there bewildered. "I thought it tasted quite nice," He commented._

 _"_ _Oh my god, you ate some of it," Skull moaned and rushed from the room, "I'm going to be sick."_

"Amen to that," Skull yelled from the living room.

A vein twitched on Reborn's head, "Stop butting into conversations Lackey!"

XXXXXX

"Does anyone have any ideas on what Reborn is making for dinner?" Colonello asked as he walked into the living room.

Viper spoke from where they were counting their money, "There is a bet going around at the moment, do you want to join in?"

"What is it?" The Rain asked suspiciously, "Who decided to start it up anyways?"

Viper stopped counting and focused on Colonello, "We did. Verde decided it would be a pasta dish, Skull said it would be soup, and Fon placed money on a curry."

"I sincerely hope that it isn't something that includes pasta," Colonello shuddered, "I can't believe that Verde ate it all, who does that?"

Viper grimaced as they were reminded of the disastrous dinner, "Don't mention that near us again."

Colonello eyed up the flickering Mist flames, "Noted."

"Do you want to place a bet or not?" Viper asked rather impatiently, "There are other things we need to do today."

"So impatient," Colonello grumbled as he thought for a moment, "It's going to be something with chicken in it. We haven't had chicken for a while and I know he secretly adores that stuff."

Viper nodded, "As per agreement, bets are a week of pastries and drinks from your favourite place. You will be notified at dinner as to who won. If nobody precisely bet close enough then whoever was the closest will win."

"Same as usual then," Colonello yawned and lay down on one of the sofa's.

XXXXXX

Reborn thoroughly cleaned all the dishes he was going to use before starting dinner. Who knows what Verde did to them last time? Very carefully, the hitman-turned-chef put peanut oil, curry paste, and chili paste in a pan. He let out a low, menacing chuckle, "Let's see if those idiots like their food spicy."

Viper floated into the kitchen and raised an unseen eyebrow at the cackling Sun, "What's gotten you into a mood now?"

"Nothing," Reborn said defensively, "What are you doing in here?"

The Mist sighed, "Never mind. You should add the chicken in soon."

Reborn gracefully twirled back to the stove and slid the meticulously cut pieces of chicken into the heated pan. "Tell the others that dinner will be ready in fifteen minutes."

"What's in it for me?" Viper demanded as they grabbed a bottle of strawberry milk from the fridge.

Reborn rolled his eyes as he added more ingredients into the pan, "The others will stop asking you every two minutes."

"Not good enough," Viper stated as they sipped their milk.

Reborn sighed and held out a ten-pound note, "There, happy?"

"Why do you have British currency on you?" The Mist queried as they greedily snatched the money.

The Hitman checked on the rice before answering, "You never know where you may end up next time you're kidnapped."

"I'll let them know," Viper said as they floated out of the kitchen.

Reborn nodded absentmindedly and focused back on the food.

XXXXXX

Skull bobbed his head to the music as he scrubbed away dirt away from the underside of his precious motorcycle. He was busy humming along to the tune and so focused on his task that he startled when the music suddenly stopped.

"We wondered where you were hiding," Fon remarked as he stood by the speakers.

Skull stretched as he stood up and groaned as his back gave a loud crack, "Is it dinner time already?"

"Very soon," Fon answered, "Whatever Reborn made, it smells absolutely divine."

Skull flashed the Storm a smile, "Well if you think it's edible then I'm definitely coming."

Fon shot the Cloud a look, "Why do you feel the need to keep referencing to Verde's dinner all the time?"

"Cause it's fun," Skull grinned and tossed aside the dirty rag in his hands, "We don't want him to get any ideas in his either, do we?"

Fon dipped his head, "God forbid."

Skull laughed and walked up to Fon, "I need to go wash my hands and change. Can you tell Reborn not to poison my food if I'm late?"

"He's not going to poison you for being late Skull," Fon sighed exasperatedly, "Nonetheless I will pass along your sincere apologies for being late if you don't make it."

"This is why you're my favourite Fon!" Skull shouted as he quickly made his way to his room.

Fon gave the retreating stuntman a fond look, "Of course I am. What would you do without me?"

XXXXXX

All the Arcobaleno, sans Skull, were sitting at the dining table and took in the sight of Reborn wearing an apron. Not just any apron though, Colonello thought, it was an apron that had the words 'Kiss the cook' written in large, bold letters. The Rain sniggered, "Any particular reason for wearing that Reborn?"

Reborn gave Colonello a haughty look, "Don't forget who's feeding you idiot. It was the only one I could find…"

Viper clapped their hands together to get the others attention, "The winner of the bet is Fon."

"What did he bet!" Colonello growled in outrage, "How close was he compared to me?"

Fon gave the Rain a triumphant smirk, "I placed my wager on curry. And you?"

"Chicken," Colonello muttered sulkily.

Reborn snickered at the look on his rival's face, "What did you think I would make Verde?"

"Something with pasta as the main ingredient," Verde said slowly, "Although I suppose you are still feigning trauma from the dish I cooked…"

Colonello stood up, "Hang on a second! Feigning trauma? Did you see what was on your plate?"

"I hate to agree with this idiot but he's right for once," Reborn added from where he was placing naan bread.

Fon coughed and diverted attention away from the touchy subject, "This is chicken curry, correct?"

"With peanuts," Reborn explained, "Since _someone_ (Viper) doesn't like to eat peanuts, I decided to ground up the peanuts and mix it into the curry. So technically it's Chicken in peanut curry."

Colonello moaned, "I was so close to winning!"

"I never heard what Skull bet on," Reborn remarked as he started to eat, "What was it?"

Viper swallowed the mouthful of curry with a hum, "He thought it was going to be soup."

"Wishful thinking," Fon commented as he dunked some naan bread in the delicious curry, "This is great Reborn."

Reborn smirked triumphantly, "The number one hitman has to be able to tackle any challenge that might occur in this type of career."

The Arcobaleno sweat-dropped, too used to Reborn's antics to really complain. "The Great Skull-Sama is here!" Skull yelled and dropped into his seat.

"Must you shout so loud Skull," Verde complained as he ate slowly.

The Cloud swallowed a large spoonful of curry, "Of course I do, I have to get on your nerves somehow."

Reborn watched Skull take four more big bites of his curry before addressing him, "Why were you so late lackey."

The Lackey sent Fon a betrayed look, "You said you would tell him I would be late."

"Am I still your favourite," Fon said innocently.

Skull scowled good-naturedly, "You'll have to wait and see."

A few minutes of chatter and barbs thrown, Skull started to look flushed and slightly pale. "Do you feel alright Skull?" Verde asked in concern.

Skull frowned, "I feel a bit off but I'm sure that I can sleep it off."

The stuntman reassured Verde, but his mind was racing, was he coming down with something? It took another two mouthfuls of curry for Skull to realise what was wrong. He only noticed when his mouth and hands started tingling in a familiar way. "Reborn," Skull started, and _oh_ , there was nausea, "What did you put in the curry?"

Reborn looked at Skull as he heard him wheeze a breath out, "Chicken, coconut milk, peanuts-"

Skull made a shocked noise that was obstructed by his tightening throat and turned in his seat to vomit on the floor. Fon was by the Cloud's side in a flash and looked on worriedly as Skull choked on the bile. The stuntman eased back into Fon's hold and wheezed pathetically, "Allergic."

"What!" Reborn yelled as he pushed Fon out of the way and lay Skull on the ground, "To what? Verde, go set up a kit for this absolute _moron_!"

"P-peanuts," Skull choked out as his lips started turning an alarming shade of blue.

Reborn snarled as he hefted the Cloud into his arms, "You're an idiot lackey! It's a miracle you're still alive."

Thankfully, the dining room was not far from the Infirmary and Reborn quickly set Skull down and stood back so Verde could inject him with an epi-pen. The Sun didn't wait for Verde to finish changing Skull into more comfortable clothes and set up an IV filled with cortisone and Sun flames. "You are so lucky that we keep epi-pens on hand, you little idiot," Reborn told Skull while he inserted the IV needle.

Skull's lips were returning to a normal colour and his wheezing was clearing up rapidly with the help of Sun-flame infused drugs. He had shut his eyes to concentrate on breathing and only opened them again when he was sure that it was under control. The Arcobaleno stood around him with similar looks of disappointment and relief, and Skull had to stop himself from closing his eyes again.

"So, I'm allergic to peanuts," Skull croaked and gratefully accepted a glass of water from Viper with trembling hands. "I may or may not have forgotten to tell you," He said quietly as they waited in silence.

Reborn folded his arms and looked down at the still-pale Cloud, "Is there anything else we should know?"

"That's it," Skull shook his head, "It's usually not that big of a deal. Small amounts of peanuts only upset my stomach."

Fon exhaled slowly, "For future reference, medical conditions should _not_ be hidden from the rest of us."

"Are we clear?" Viper added as Skull didn't reply.

Skull nodded tiredly, exhaustion taking over his body, "Understood."

"Go to sleep Skull," Verde said with uncharacteristic softness, "We'll talk about this more tomorrow." The stuntman didn't need anymore encouragement and dropped into a deep sleep quickly. "I mean it," Verde continued, "We should go to bed soon too."

Reborn sat in a nearby chair and met Verde's eyes challengingly, "I'm staying here tonight."

"We all are," Fon said as he curled up on a blow-up bed they kept in the room, "Don't try and deny it."

When Skull woke up the next day, he was surrounded by his family and took great joy in moving all of them into implicating positions and snapped a few pictures for blackmail. He then woke them all up and proceeded to be lectured and questioned for the next three hours. Joys…

~Don't forget to follow and leave a comment below~


	3. Chapter 3

The request I received from Skulls Fangirl.

Skull smiled at the server as she walked over with his order. "Thanks Emily," He said brightly, "How's college going?"

Emily grinned, "I passed my classes this semester with Distinctions. I wouldn't have been able to do that without your help Skull!"

"I'm sure someone would have given you some help eventually," Skull replied, embarrassed.

Emily shook her head, "If you hadn't shown me those sites Skull, I would have been doomed."

"You were the one who worked so hard," The Cloud smiled.

The server sighed at Skull's attempts to wave off her gratitude, "I better get back to my job. Say goodbye before you leave, yeah?"

"I always do," Skull replied good-naturedly and watched the server bustle off.

Skull turned his attention to the cake he chose to order this week. It was a delicious-looking strawberries and cream cheesecake topped with slices of fresh strawberries and some whipped cream to the side. He took a sip of his hot chocolate and cut a piece of the cake off. The cheesecake was amazing, he would definitely have to order it again sometime. Perhaps Viper would like a slice?

The cheesecake was quickly devoured, and Skull sat back with a content sigh. Unfortunately, he needed to meet up with the other Arcobaleno for a mission briefing in forty minutes and couldn't bask in the warm sunlight that was slowly creeping up his body. The Cloud let out a groan and he stood up and went to pay, silently mourning the nap that had almost come upon him.

"Skull, are you leaving already?" Emily pouted as she rang up Skull's purchases.

The purple-haired adult rolled his eyes fondly, "I've got a business meeting scheduled under an hour away. It takes forever to get there so yes, I need to leave now otherwise I'll be late."

"Can't have your attendance record soured, can we?" The young woman teased, "Twelve dollars and fifty cents."

A quick tap of his credit card and Skull was ready to head out of the café. "Have a good day Emily!" Skull said to the waitress.

"You too Skull!" Emily replied, and went to tend to a recently vacated table.

XXXXXX

Skull's motorcycle was parked a few blocks away from the café because of the full streets, not to mention that he adored walking around this part of the neighbourhood. It was currently spring, so all the flower bushes were overflowing with all different sorts of flowers. There was one particular house that boasted an array of meticulously planted rose bushes, with red, pink, and white roses blossoming under the careful attention they received every day.

Skull breathed in the sweet smell of the luscious roses as he walked by and gave a wave and grin at the gardener who was watering the flowers. A brightly lit smile was plastered on the Cloud's face as he enjoyed the simpler things in life, such as the birds playing in the sky above him. The beaming smile rapidly dissipated however, when he saw someone hovering around his bike up ahead.

Normally, Skull didn't mind people coming up and looking at his motorcycle, but something was odd about the person currently leering at his precious bike. "Can I help you buddy?" Skull asked warily as he reached the man and his ride.

The brunette man didn't look up from where he was checking out the motorcycle, "Just checking out this bike man. I wonder who owns this beauty? My name is Alexander Simmons, yours?"

"Skull, and I own the bike your looking at," Skull replied dryly, watching as the shifty male finally looked up.

Alexander visibly looked at Skull from head to toe, lingering on his face, and grimaced in disgust, "You're saying a punk like you owns this piece of art? Don't make me laugh."

"Excuse me!" Skull spluttered in shock as the man -Alexander- continued to insult the stunned Cloud.

"I mean, look at you! With all piercings, purple hair- purple everything! Are you asking to get beaten up?"

Skull's mouth turned down unhappily, "If you'll excuse me, I have a meeting to go to. I don't want to be late."

The Cloud went to swing a leg over his motorcycle when the antagonistic male threw a punch at the back of his head and he went down in a heap. Skull held his angry flames at bay and kicked the man's kneecap. A satisfying thump was heard alongside a howl of pain. He wiped some blood away from his face- a broken nose was such a _lovely_ thing- and got up unsteadily. Alexander recovered quickly and threw another punch to Skull's head.

If this were any other time, he would have been able to dodge the poorly-swung fist, however holding his flames back meant the instant concussion he received wasn't healing. Because of the severe concussion, Skull couldn't move in time and was hit in the face harshly.

The last thing Skull remembered was mocking laughter and a harsh blow to his ribs.

XXXXXX

"You have a message~" A cheery voice called out from within the darkness.

Skull moaned as he fluttered open his eyes, and sluggishly sat up with a hand on his aching ribs. He fumbled for his phone and discovered that he had multiple messages and calls from the other Arcobaleno. Nobody was nearby, meaning they wouldn't make him go to a hospital, so he draped his healing body over his motorcycle and began driving slowly to the mansion.

"What an utter asshole," Skull swore as his Flames started actively healing his ribs. He swerved into the opposite lane for a second when a rib was pushed back into place with a loud crack. "Damn it!" Thankfully the lane was unoccupied.

The motorcycle purred as Skull turned into the mansion's driveway and familiar Flame signatures surged towards him. He sighed and readied himself to be snatched off his bike by the closest person. Frantic Storm flames reached Skull first and Fon burst into view and tackled him off the bike he had parked in a moment of foresight. "Where the hell have you been!" The Storm shouted and started patting Skull down for injuries.

"Fon, I'm fine," Skull struggled to get free of Fon's strong grip. "Can you get off please?" It was just his luck that the Storm pressed down on his recently broken rib. "Holy shit!" Skull swore with pained tears in his eyes.

"Reborn!" Fon called urgently. His hands were gentler as he started to strip Skull of his shirt with a worried tilt of his mouth. "Where are you hurt? What happened?"

Skull blinked away the tears, "I got mugged." It wasn't like he was going to tell the Arcobaleno that he got beaten up because someone didn't like the way he looked. That would be stupid. They would roll their eyes and tell him to dress like a normal person.

"You got mugged, kora!" Colonello yelled as he turned around the corner with Reborn. "Why didn't you fight back?"

Skull flushed and looked away from the Rain's stare, "I got caught off-guard. It won't happen again."

"You bet it won't," Reborn growled as he crouched by Skull with his Flames dancing across his hands. "You'll be training with me for two weeks because of this."

The Cloud winced as Reborn prodded one of his injured ribs, "Sorry."

"I have the first aid kit," Verde announced. "Are we going to stand at the entrance all day though? Because I don't see a reason why we can't move inside."

"It's not that bad," Skull complained. "All of you worry too much!"

Reborn glared, "You have three broken ribs and a concussion."

"And?" The Cloud shrugged. "It's not like I'm not healing."

Fon put a hand on his friend's shoulder, "That's not the point Skull."

"Then what is?" Skull started to get angry. "Why do have to baby me all the time!" He pushed away Fon and brushed off the others, determined to sulk alone in his room. "Just leave me alone."

Viper watched silently as Skull ran past them and up the stairs, "There's something wrong with him."

"The logical conclusion is that," Verde agreed as he started packing up the first aid kit.

Reborn stared after the Cloud, "Something happened while he was at that café he likes."

"We should follow him the next time he goes there," Fon suggested with a forced grin. It turned more feral, "I'm sure the person will reveal themselves to us there."

Viper nodded, "I can hide us with my illusions. You owe me strawberry milk though."

"Then it's agreed," Reborn concurred. "The meeting's cancelled today; we won't get anything done."

The Arcobaleno's Flames burned strongly as they went inside the mansion. Whoever hurt _their_ Cloud was going to pay dearly.

XXXXXX

Colonello crouched behind the wall as Skull walked out whistling a tune and twirling his keys around his fingers. He put a hand to his ear, _"He's in my sight."_

 _"_ _Copy that,"_ Reborn responded. _"Stay out of sight."_

The Rain rolled his eyes, this wasn't his first reconnaissance mission. Damn Sun. He watched as Skull threw a leg over his bike and peeled out of the mansion grounds. _"He's gone,"_ Colonello reported. The air beside him shimmered and revealed Viper and the other Arcobaleno.

"Are you guys serious?" Colonello yelled. "What was the point of me doing this if you were right there the whole time!"

Reborn smirked, "It was amusing."

"You!" Colonello made to tackle Reborn but he just moved to the side.

Fon flared his Flames, "We have better things to do than fight."

"Skull will reach the café soon," Verde reported as he watched the tracker.

Colonello grumbled, "I'll get you after we see what Skull's problem is."

"Bring it _Rain_ ," Reborn taunted.

Viper ignored the squabbling duo and expanded their flames to shift them all to an alley near Skull's location. "We're here," They announced in a bland voice.

"A warning would be nice next time," Verde groaned as he held his rolling stomach.

Colonello wasn't doing much better and was focusing on the expelling the contents of his late breakfast. He didn't need another thing Reborn could taunt him about. As he stood up, a flash of brown caught his eye and he watched a man in his twenties saunter past the alley. Something in his subconscious nagged at him and he paid closer attention. There was a suspicious bulge in the man's waistband; a knife of some sort. "Where's Skull?" He asked.

"A few hundred metres that way," Verde pointed in the direction of where the man had gone.

Colonello squared his shoulders, "Let's go."

"Wait," Viper ordered, and used their Flames to make them invisible to the people on the streets. "We don't want Skull to see us."

"Now we can go," Reborn said and walked out to the street.

Colonello followed at his rival's heels and narrowed his eyes when he saw the man confronting Skull about something. "It's him," He said with conviction.

The Arcobaleno turned to their Rain. "What?" Fon asked.

"The guy with Skull," The sniper explained as he started jogging to the increasingly violent conversation. "I can guarantee that guy is trouble."

Before any of them could act on the newfound information, the man pulled out a knife and plunged it into their Cloud's thigh. "God damnit," Reborn snarled and pulled out his gun.

Viper removed the illusion and shifted to Skull as Reborn shot at the man. "What the hell is your problem man!" He cried as the bullet narrowly missed him.

"My problem is that you hurt our friend," Reborn spat with held back fury.

The man raised an eyebrow, "This faggot? Please, you could do so much better than this piece of shit." By Viper, Skull teared up and looked away from the arriving Arcobaleno.

Enraged Rain Flames heightened to an intense degree and before Reborn could stop him, Colonello jumped on the man and his Flames put the man in a coma. Reborn quickly pulled his friend down the street away from Skull who was watching with wide eyes and looked into furious eyes. "You need to calm down Colonello," Reborn ordered. "Skull needs you to be calm."

Colonello looked over to Skull and winced as he saw the dagger still imbedded in his thigh. He took a few deep breaths and reigned his Flames in. "Let's go see our idiot Cloud."

Reborn released the Rain and went to help Verde with his Lackey's wound. Colonello sat cross-legged next to Skull and engulfed him in a hug. "Senpai?" Skull squeaked.

"You stupid, stupid idiot," Colonello murmured as he doused Skull in a liberal amount of Rain Flames. "Next time just tell us."

"I thought you would laugh," Skull admitted tearfully.

Colonello grasped the Cloud's shoulders, "When Reborn and I tease you, do we ever say anything like that?"

"No," Skull said and leaned into Viper's gentle touch behind him.

"Do we ever make fun of you for what you like?" Skull shook his head. "Then why would we laugh at you for something like this?"

Skull let a few tears trail down his face, "You're not mad at me?"

"At that guy, yes," Colonello growled. "But I'm not mad at you."

Skull gave the Rain a watery smile, "I'm sorry."

"I know," Colonello sighed. "You ready to go home?"

Skull blinked and looked down at his leg. Sometime during their conversation, the knife had been removed and the would was bandaged. "Yeah."

"Come on Lackey," Reborn helped his Cloud up but paused.

"Reborn?" Fon asked in concern.

The Sun pinched the bridge of his nose, "We didn't bring a car."

Everyone sweat dropped. Viper's eyes shone greedily, "We'll bring the car here if you pay us three thousand dollars."

"Take it from our accounts," Fon said with a fond smile.

XXXXXX


	4. Chapter 4

So sorry about the wait. I had an important appointment with my psychologist (Who is a saint, seriously) and was told, yes, I have gone back into depression. So it sucks to be me right now. Don't worry about me though, I'm already pulling myself out again, yay!

Marco was nervous. He was part of the group meant to grab the Cloud Arcobaleno and really, _what_ was his Boss thinking? Did he forget about the other Arcobaleno? They were vicious when provoked and this sure as hell was going to piss them off. He shuddered. "Oi!" One of the men called. "Get your head in the game Marco."

"We're all going to die," Marco predicted pitifully.

The man, Luca, rolled his eyes. "How hard can it be. He's ranked seventh _and_ it's one against twenty."

Marco stared blankly at his fellow mafia member. "He's an Arcobaleno. The greatest in the world are part of that group."

"And?" Luca laughed. "The Cloud's what? The greatest idiot or something."

"I'm not sticking around after this." Marco crossed his arms. "If you were smart, you'd do the same."

Their leader yelled at them from the back of the alley. "Shut up! Both of you."

Luca clapped him on the shoulder and passed him, "Unlike you Marco, I ain't a coward."

"You're fucked then," Marco stated with a strong certainty.

"Plan's starting," The leader called out.

Marco slid into his position behind an oddly placed wall. He tensed as he grabbed his tranquiliser gun, packed with enough drugs it could kill an elephant. He was _so_ fucked when the Arcobaleno found out what happened.

The Arcobaleno started walking down the alley, chattering on his phone. Marco said a small prayer in his head. _"Get ready."_ Someone whispered through the headset. The Cloud walked further away from the busy street and Marco could now hear him talking on the phone.

"I'm thinking about getting Oodako a new tank," The purple-haired man was saying. A pause. "He's not food senpai!" A huff. "So mean."

 _"_ _Now!"_

The Cloud Arcobaleno had no time to fight back as he was shot three times with tranquiliser darts. Marco watched, detached, as the man stumbled with wide eyes before he collapsed bonelessly. _"Skull?"_ A voice came from the phone. _"Skull? Answer me!"_

His leader picked up the phone with a confident smirk. "Skull can't come to the phone right now. Can I take a message?"

They were all so fucked.

 _"_ _Who are you?"_

"The Lumaca Famiglia at your service… Well, not really." His leader jested with a goddamn _smile_.

 _"_ _When I find you, you will wish you never existed."_

That was _Reborn_. The World's Greatest Hitman was _pissed_. Marco whimpered. They were all _so, so fucked_.

Luca clapped him on the shoulder, "What did I tell you? We're on the top now!"

Marco just cried silently. _So very, very fucked_.

XXXXXX

Fon was casually lying on the couch reading a book when Reborn walked into the room. "Stop spending so much money on tanks for your octopus. Better of eating it I say."

Fon gave him a disapproving look. "Stop teasing Skull," He admonished the Sun who smirked.

"He'd make good sashimi," Reborn contemplated.

The Storm threw a pillow at the hitman. "Don't be mean to him."

"Or what?" Reborn asked and pulled his phone from his ear.

Fon raised an eyebrow, "Really? Stop flirting Renato."

Reborn hummed but started to frown as he went back to his phone. "Skull?" There was no answer. A sinking stone dropped into his stomach. "Skull? Answer me!"

Fon was beside Reborn in a flash as agitated Sun flames crackled through the bond the Arcobaleno shared. Skull, he realised with a foreboding feeling, was a very faint flicker. "What happened!"

Reborn raised a tense hand to silence the Storm. "Who are you?"

Fon had never heard such a hair-raising tone from the man beside him before. The answer was obviously unsatisfactory, as enraged Sun flames burnt the pillow he had thrown at him before to charred scraps.

"When I find you," Reborn threatened. "You will wish you never existed."

If it wasn't such a bad situation to be in, Fon would be incredibly turned on from the pure strength and promise in his Sun's voice. He jumped slightly as the phone Reborn had been holding was snapped closed and then crushed to pieces. "Where's Viper?"

The air in front of them shimmered before revealing the Mist. "You called?" They asked.

"The Lumaca Family," Reborn said. "What do you know?"

Viper threw back their hood and floated to the ground. "This is about Skull," He stated with certainty.

Fon placed a calming arm on Reborn. "He was kidnapped."

"Bastard's tried to mock _me_." Reborn growled.

Viper gave the two of them a sharp grin, "Oh? We are going to have _so much fun_ with them."

"Information," Fon reminded the Mist.

Viper waved a hand at him and sat down on the recently vacated sofa. "Lumaca. Snail. They're new to the business."

"Are you telling me Skull was kidnapped by a bunch of idiots!" Reborn said incredulously.

Viper pursed his lips, "They don't have any Flame users, but they have a lot of men to make up for that. The Lumaca Famiglia sells tranquilisers. All sorts of various strengths and all different concoctions."

"What happened?" Verde asked as he rushed into the room.

Fon answered with thinned lips, "Kidnapped."

Verde was taken aback. "Kidnapped?"

"That what he said idiota," Reborn spat.

Fon flared his Flames to gather their attention. "Staying calm right now is vital to getting Skull back quicker," He pointed out.

"Anyone have a plan?"

Viper curled his lips into a saccharine smile. "Here's what I was thinking…"

XXXXXX

Consciousness was slowly creeping back to Skull. The first thing he felt was the stomach-churning nausea that made him gag. "I would prefer if you didn't vomit over the recently cleaned floor," A voice said with amusement.

Skull blinked open blurry eyes to see a brown-haired man looking at him from the other side of the table. He tried to move his limbs but discovered they were chained to the chair he was sitting in. "What," Skull coughed. "Where am I?"

"Welcome to the Lumaca Famiglia's base." The man spread his arms grandly.

Skull stared at the man incomprehensively. "Is that supposed to mean something to me?"

The man grit his teeth, "My name is Orfeo."

Skull laughed hoarsely. "Orfeo. I wonder what you're deprived of?" Orfeo turned red with anger and gestured to someone behind him. Skull moaned as a grunt slammed a fist into his stomach.

"I suggest you remain civil Arcobaleno," Orfeo warned. "I can make your life hell if I choose to."

Skull didn't have a reply for the man as he turned his head to the side and expelled the contents of his stomach. He choked on the bile and pained tears streamed down his eyes. "My floors," Orfeo sighed. He ignored the pained choking Skull was doing.

"Screw your floor," Skull spat at him. His stomach turned unpleasantly again, and he fought not to gag. "What do you want from me?"

Orfeo smiled, "That's very simple Arcobaleno." Skull resisted the urge to spit at him. "I want you to tell me everything you know about your associates."

"Go to hell," Skull hissed. He tried to gather his Flames but couldn't feel anything. "What did you do?" An icy chill spread throughout him. The man grinned unpleasantly. "What did you do!"

"Ever heard of Flame suppressors," Orfeo laughed. "They're very easy to get right now. I'm sure you've heard of the Estraneo?"

Skull struggled in his bonds, "I'm going to slaughter you!" His flames rose with his temper and tried to rage with him.

"I sincerely doubt that," Orfeo looked down at Skull as he rose from his chair. "Have fun with him boys."

The man walked out a door Skull hadn't noticed before, leaving him to the mercy of the people behind him. Well fuck.

XXXXXX

A large mansion was situated in a rural part of Italy, close to the city but too far away for nosy neighbours. It had a sprawling grass lawn with a long gravel driveway. There were more security features around the property than what would be normal. Things such as motion detectors, multiple alarms, patrolling guards, and security cameras were all part of the features.

It would be very challenging for any Mafiosi to clear the way without a sound. However, the Arcobaleno were _not_ any normal Mafiosi; They were the best of the best; The top dogs of the Mafia. They were also _extremely_ pissed off.

Verde hacked into the electronic security features and systematically shut down each alarm and detector one by one. In the case of the video footage, he set it to loop and Viper created a complementary illusion where the guards would believe the footage was normal.

Any guards the Arcobaleno came across were attacked by Fon and Reborn. The other two would have felt pity for them, but they had taken _their_ Cloud, and all bets were now off. The last thing one guard saw was horrifying; The other two people part of his patrol were burned alive by Storm Flames as Reborn shot them in, _er_ , painful places to say the least. It was a quick but extremely painful death. Nobody could say that the Arcobaleno weren't sadistic shits when they came face to face with their wrath.

During a short respite, Verde would continue hacking into the mansion's cameras and security. He disabled every single piece of security with glee as he looked through camera footage for Skull. Sadly, Colonello was at Mafia Land and wasn't available to calm Reborn down with his Flames so Viper and Fon were busy attempting to try to at least manage his rage.

Suffice to say, they were all happy when Verde found Skull… Until they saw the footage. They turned from joy back down to rage pretty damn fast.

Inside the mansion, Luca felt like he owed Marco a massive apology.

XXXXXX

Skull fought to keep the tears in his eyes falling from his eyes. There was no reason to give his captors more to laugh at. His wrists ached from where they were expertly bound above him. They were throbbing ceaselessly, and he could feel dried blood being painted slowly with trails of fresh crimson every time he shifted.

Skull shifted again despite the pain, trying to get his numb feet to hold him up more securely. He grit his teeth as blood rushing back to his poor feet stabbed into him painfully. His attempts to get more comfortable were interrupted by the door behind him opening with a click and a beam of beaming light illuminated the room.

"Back again." Skull commented wearily. "Decided I'm not going to tell you anything yet?"

The door was shut and the dim lights in his prison were switched on. "Not quite," A new voice said amusedly. Skull tensed noticeably, and the man laughed. "I was told that we had an Arcobaleno in our care."

"Go to hell," Skull spat with vitriol. "I'm not telling you anything."

The man tittered, "Did I say anything about information?"

Icy-cold tendrils slid down Skull's spine. "What do you want?"

"Me, or my Boss?" The man jested. "I simply want a new plaything; my other one's broke a while ago. Boss wants information though, so it's a win-win situation for everyone!"

"Fuck you!" Skull tried to kick the man but ended up swinging in his chains and scrambling to get his legs back under him.

The man snarled, "That wasn't nice Arcobaleno. No more pleasantries."

"We were being pleasant before?" Skull jested, "Better work harder in that area."

The interrogator (?) slapped him, "Don't test me _Cloud_."

"Or what?" Skull asked with boredom. "You'll slap me again? I'm _so_ scared."

"Have you ever heard of water boarding before?" Skull paled. "You have. I haven't had a chance to use this particular technique for a while. It _would_ be fun to do that." The man took a minute to think.

Skull steeled himself, "You're insane. I won't tell you _anything_."

"Of course I'm insane," The man grinned. "But I don't believe you won't tell me anything. Too bad Boss wants you to answer some question, I could have much more fun if he didn't."

"Hurry up and decide already," Skull demanded.

The man clicked his tongue. "So impatient. I made my decision five minutes ago though, so I'll be seeing you in an hour."

"What do you mean?" Skull asked.

"Bye bye!" The man laughed. The door shut, and the lights immediately cut off, leaving Skull in the darkness.

He wasn't kept waiting too long, and he heard a whirling noise above him. Cold air started blasting into the room, chilling the air drastically. "Bastard."

It didn't take long for Skull to start shivering and goose bumps to cover his minimally clothed body. He closed his eyes and tried to retreat into his mind. "Hurry up already," He whispered into the empty room.

XXXXXX

Reborn was not a happy man. He reworded that statement; Reborn was on the cusp of Raging. Which was bad since Fon already was, and Verde was looking a lot less level-headed than before. That was not to say that Viper wasn't furious, because they were, but they had the forethought to hold their own thoughts of Raging at the back of their mind.

The mansion's doors stood no chance against Raging Storm Flames. Viper prepared their Mist Flames and wasn't disappointed. Men started swarming to the entrance because of the noise that was going on but were wiped out within seconds. Trapped in illusions, they would attack one another as Reborn or Fon would gouge into them with their Flames.

Viper almost felt sorry for what the cleaning crew's from Vongola would have to go through, because body pieces were everywhere, and not in whole pieces either. They were enjoying watching their Cloud's abductors more than feeling pity for the clean-up crew though. If one were to look into the Mist's eyes, they would see them glowing with pent-back, Raging Mist Flames.

One grunt in particular and Viper floated down to them. He were pale-faced as he watched his Famiglia being demolished with glee, but there was a knowing glint in his eyes that made Viper pause. "You," They spoke with a muffled voice.

The man jumped and almost burst into tears when he saw the illusionist. "I didn't want to!" He wailed. "I swear!"

"What do you know?" Viper questioned.

The man steeled himself, "He's being kept in a room a few hallways from here." Viper allowed their flames to rise to the surface. "I can lead you him."

"Verde!" Viper called out and gestured to the man. "He'll take us to Skull."

The man shrunk in the presence of _two_ Arcobaleno. "He needs medical attention."

"Lead us to him," Verde demanded. He ignored the chaos happening in the background. "Your name?"

"Marco," The man said with a tremble. He began to lead them through the maze of corridors.

Verde took a second to look through the Famiglia's files. "Marco Segreti, age seventeen. Brought into the Lumaca Famiglia five months ago. Interesting, you show signs of Flame usage."

"What does that mean?" Viper interjected.

Verde's mouth curled upwards. "It means that he is an active Flame user."

"Does anything get past you people?" Marco said with surprise. "Nobody here knew that!"

Viper caught onto his hidden meaning, "You've never used your Flames around other people before."

"Do you think I'm an idiot?" Marco scoffed. "I may be part of the Lumaca Family but I sure as hell don't want to be."

"How were you recruited?" Verde interrogated.

A self-deprecating smile was given to the scientist. "When you live on the streets for most of your life, what you want is something simple. I wanted shelter, food and water that didn't come sparsely, and I wanted to feel like I belonged somewhere."

"But you don't want to be here," Viper stated.

"Not anymore," Marco agreed. "I didn't join just to find out that we were making deals with the goddamn Estraneo. I sure as hell didn't want to challenge you guys."

Viper noticed that he was leaving a major piece out of the conversation. "Your Flame type."

"Storm," Marco answered breezily. "We're almost there; Just go left and the third door to the right. Are you going to kill me now?"

Verde looked ready to kill the Storm, but Viper held him back. "You're going to stay here and wait for the Vongola to arrive. Tell them I recruited you."

"You're recruiting him!" Verde yelled at the same time Marco barked a laugh.

"You go from wanting to kill me to recruiting me!" The Storm smirked bitterly.

Viper shrugged, "It will be profitable."

"Whatever, I'll wait here." Marco sat down by the wall and gestured to them, "Your Cloud is awaiting you."

"Don't mock me brat," Viper hissed but began floating away.

Marco raised his hands in surrender and didn't drop them until both Arcobaleno had rounded the corner. He slumped against the wall with a sigh, "The Mafia is so fucking weird."

Viper threw open the doors and was pushed out of the way by Verde when they paused in shock. Skull had been gone for six hours. In six hours, they had managed to do this to Skull. _Their Cloud_.

In the middle of a shadowed room was Skull. He hung taught by his wrists, tight metal cuffs chafing against his skin and dried blood coated the dirty metal. A handprint shaped bruise was on his cheek, turning a mottled purple and blue. His casual jeans and shirt were threadbare and didn't protect him in the slightest against the deathly chill in the room, giving his purple lips. The Cloud barely looked alive.

"Viper!" Verde shouted. "I need help!"

The Mist forced themselves out of their reverie. "What can I do?"

"The cuffs need to be taken off and he needs to get out of this damn room." Verde took a shaky breath. "I need Reborn. I don't know what's wrong with his Flames."

"S-suppressants," A shaky voice said. "Estraneo."

Verde touched Skull with a gentle hand, "What hurts? You're okay; We have you."

Viper began dismantling the metal around their Cloud's wrists, taking care to avoid hurting him any more than he was. "S cold," Skull moaned. His moment of lucidity was slipping away. A tear trailed down his cheek and Verde brushed it away.

"I know," Verde murmured to the distraught Cloud. "Where's Fon and Reborn?"

Viper hissed and backed away from the handcuffs. Mist Flames flared furiously throughout the crumbling mansion to alert the two calming members to the situation. Fon was in the room almost immediately after the summons, having already been making his way to Skull. He took once glance at the offending metal and it disintegrated hurriedly.

"Where's Reborn?" Verde asked as Viper floated Skull into the hallway.

Fon jerked his head the way he came, "Picking off the last of them. Should be here any second."

"What's the problem?" Said person barked as he ran around the corner.

Verde relinquished command to the Sun, "Suppressants, low temperature, and his wrists."

"Viper get the car," Reborn ordered. "I need you to grab the emergency blanket we brought as well."

The Mist looked at Skull one last time before teleporting away to do as their Sun ordered. Verde was already guiding Fon through disintegrating the drugs in Skull's system. "This is safe isn't it?" Fon asked as he prepared his Flames.

"It's the best option," Reborn replied. "It's like feeding him Storm-infused tea, but directly."

"Just pulse your flames through his body twice, it will get rid of the drugs." Verde explained once more to Fon.

The two Arcobaleno experienced in medical matters held their breath as Fon cautiously prodded Skull with his Flames before surging them through his fingertips and into Skull. He backed off afterwards and looked worried when Reborn turned the Cloud onto his side. Before he could ask Reborn if he needed to do something else, Skull proceeded to vomit questionable-looking liquid.

Skull whined lowly in his throat as he chocked on bile for the third time today. His throat burned unpleasantly and as soon as he stopped, he tried to roll onto his back. Lucidity was slowly returning, and sound and touch began filtering back through his exhausted brain. "Want Fon," He cried and damn anyone who said he didn't need to.

Fon looked to Reborn as the Cloud called out for him and was given a nod. He wrapped his arms around the tearful element and let him cry into his chest. Weak Cloud Flames started flickering through their bond. "Carry him to the car," Reborn directed.

"Here's the blanket," Viper alerted the Sun. "Verde's in the car, he turned the heater on."

Reborn gave an approving nod, "Wrap the blanket around him Fon."

Fon awkwardly picked up Skull who curled into him and ended up wrapping both Skull and himself in the warm blanket. "Let's go home Skull," He cooed to the delicate Cloud.

"Is there a reason there's a lackey left alive?" Reborn asked as he watched Fon carry of their Cloud.

Verde shrugged, "Viper wants him in Vongola. He's an active Storm and didn't want to be a part of the Famiglia anymore."

"Did he hurt Skull?" Reborn had a glint in his eye.

"No," The Lightning shook his head. "Even helped lead us to him."

Reborn grumbled. "Better be a damn good Storm."

XXXXXX

It took a week for Skull to stop being insanely coddled, and although he enjoyed spending time with his lovers so much, there was only so much behaviour he could take before snapping. Reborn was cuddling him in their bed when the Cloud finally got fed up, and later on he would saunter into the living room with a winning smirk.

The Vongola clean-up crew was given the daunting task of going through the Lumaca Famiglia's mansion. Three people quit and joined CEDEF just, so they wouldn't do the task anymore. Vongola was at its wits end as cleaner after cleaner had mental breakdowns. The only positive situation that came about because of the damn Famiglia was that they got a new Storm recruit that was quickly rising through the ranks.

I really don't know why I created Marco so thoroughly. He might be featured in other works in the future...

Yes, I do see the Arcobaleno as polyamorous. If you don't, that's fine but it's how they will be portrayed in my works.

Please leave a comment down below~


	5. Chapter 5

I am super sorry for the incredibly long wait. I started university and have been busy adjusting schedules around that. I have also lost interest in this fandom for a while so it was a bit of a struggle to get the end piece in. Good news though! I was recently told by my psychologist that I am now officially not depressed anymore! Hooray!

Viper was furious. As were the other Arcobaleno, but they felt a certain pressure since Skull was the one who protected them. They could all feel Skull struggling through their bond and a permanent chill permeated through their bones. He was freezing. More than that, he was slowly, slowly slipping through the bond. There was only one upside to the fact he was so cold; They could now eliminate most areas of the map because of the temperature.

Colonello was pacing metres away from Viper having finally gotten back from Mafia Land. He would stop every minute or so to stare at the map they had pinned up and cross more areas out. Verde was busy preparing the medical supplies and Fon was heating up some soup for when Skull was found.

A loud bang startled Colonello from pacing. Reborn entered the room, fedora shadowing his eyes. "He won't say anything."

The Rain swore and closed his eyes briefly, entertaining thoughts of entering the interrogation room himself. "Did you get the contactor's name?"

"No." Reborn slammed his fist onto the table harshly. "Skull is somewhere, dying for all we know, and this bastard won't say a goddamn word!"

Viper hovered by Colonello. "I could try a new technique I've been working on," He shrugged. "It's worth a chance."

"Why didn't you say anything before?" Reborn questioned.

Colonello stared piercingly at the Mist. "You don't know if the technique will work, do you?"

Viper tilted his head in agreement. "Ideally, I would go into his mindscape and retrieve the information. The worst-case scenario is that I break his mind and the information is lost, along with my consciousness."

"If you retrieved the information," Reborn said slowly. "Successfully, I mean. Would his mind still break from the pressure?"

"I've never used this skill before," Viper reminded him. "I haven't had time to finetune anything or find out if it even works."

Colonello leant against the table, tapping his hand. "This is the best suggestion we've had so far," Thoughtfully, he glanced at the Mist. "If there is even a remote chance of success, it would go a long way to further the information we already have."

"Are we in agreement then?" Viper asked sharply.

Reborn looked at Colonello for a moment. "I'm in."

"So am I," Colonello declared.

"I'll get started then," Viper said with a wicked smile.

Reborn mirrored him, "Make him scream."

XXXXXX

In Florence, Skull sputtered as he breached the surface of the ocean. He crossed his fingers before opening his eyes, for once let him have some good luck. Skull opened his eyes and sighed in dismay; Surrounding him was miles of cold, blue water with no land in sight. "When I said I wanted to go to the beach, I didn't mean like this."

While surveying the area around him, Skull caught sight of a bobbing piece of something around three hundred metres away. "Better than nothing…" He started swimming over to the object, pausing every now and then to rub his arms roughly- it was freezing! He was nearly five feet away from the object, now identified as a water cooler, when he ran into trouble. Something had brushed against his leg, and he could feel the rough, sandpaper-like sensation through his soaked bike suit.

Skull stilled his strokes as he saw a triangular fin breech the water close by him. "Please don't let that be a shark." The fin, definitely a shark, cut towards him abruptly and through the pale light of the moon, he could see a large, grey body. Skull was not ashamed to say that he panicked. A high- pitched scream was issued from his hoarse throat and he thrashed his limbs in an attempt to scare the shark away. "Go away, go away, go away!"

Furiously paddling towards the water cooler, now only a foot away, he had to quickly backpedal when the shark cut into the space. Adrenaline was pumping through his veins and propagated his strength to send the creature flying into the air and away from him. Skull clutched onto the water cooler and relieved tears fell down his face in rivulets. "Fuck my life right now," The Cloud managed to gasp out. Hysterical laughter bubbled up between the tears and his stomach rolled unpleasantly as all the conflicting feeling affected him physically.

The laughter cut off quickly as the icy coldness of the water started seeping into his bones. He had almost forgotten about the temperature problem; Last night the news had reported that Italy was going to have a few cold days, but this was ridiculous! The only piece of good luck he had was that it was still light, being the middle of the afternoon, but it wouldn't be long until the sky began to darken.

Skull sighed and draped himself against the floating cooler. At least he didn't have to constantly swim anymore… The gentle waves made him bob up and down, and he dropped his head onto his forearms. Hopefully the others would find him soon. Others? Friends? Lovers? He had no idea how to address them. His thought drifted in different directions as he floated in the sea.

XXXXXX

Colonello fought the urge to rub his fingers together as phantom chills wracked his body. Skull was clearly not having a fun time wherever he was. A warm blanket was draped over his shoulders and someone sat with him under the blanket; Verde. "What are you doing here?" Colonello asked, wincing when his voice came out hoarse. He cleared his throat.

"The cold," Verde stated. Emotions swirled behind his closed off face, but they didn't show through the bond. "I'm worried."

The Rain looked over at his lover. "Elaborate, Verde. Why are you worried?"

Verde shrugged and got nudged in return by Colonello. "If we don't find him in the next two hours, Skull is going to get hypothermia- bad hypothermia. It's why we're all so cold right now; Our symptoms won't deteriorate further, but Skull's will."

"There's more," Reborn said perceptively as he entered the room having received a nudge by his Rain. "Tell us."

Verde curled into a lanky ball. He whispered with held back emotion, "I don't like being cold. It reminds me of the past."

Rain Flames flickered into the physical realm and soothed the agitated scientist. Reborn sat on the other side of Verde and pulled his head onto his lap, Colonello doing the same with his legs. Verde sighed as both massaged their Flames through his body. The tight tension in his body gradually relaxed and he let a contented purr out. Warmth flowed through his body and made him forget about the cold that had plagued him moments before.

Viper materialized close to Reborn and their eyes softened as they looked at the scientist. "I got everything I could." They reported.

"And?" Colonello perked up. "What did you find?"

Viper floated down to the floor and pulled their hood off. "He didn't know much," He admitted. "He just had a vague thought in mind when he teleported Skull away."

"He went with Skull too for a few moments though," Reborn stated. "How is it possible he didn't know where he was!" The hitman slammed a fist on the table before wearily dropping into a chair. "Did you get anything useful at all?"

Mist Flames flickered around Viper's form. "He's in an ocean and he's still in Italy."

"Fuck," Colonello summed up.

Verde gathered his wits about him. "At least we know Skull's close to us and not halfway across the world."

"What do we do now?" Viper asked aloud.

Reborn took a deep, calming breath and stood up strongly. "Here's what we're going to do-"

XXXXXX

Skull moaned as nausea rocked his body once more. He was becoming ridiculously sea-sick and he swore he could feel his temperature dropping by the minute. Shivers wracked his body periodically and his fingers were becoming numb. "Never again," Skull pledged. "Someone else can deal with this shit next time. I'm out." Another wave of nausea made his gag and he turned his head to retch, the constant gagging irritating his dry throat.

A massive shudder rippled across the Cloud's body and he had to fumble for the cooler as he sunk lower into the cooling ocean. The sun was slowly setting across the ocean, sure to be a magnificent sight if he wasn't almost drowning in the salty water.

Something wrapped around the Cloud's leg and he shrieked loudly, kicking out both legs to free himself. The grip grew stronger and the creature travelled up his thigh and attached itself to his side. Skull stared, half-hysterical, at the octopus that was looking at him dolefully. A little tentacle was waved at him, and Skull melted. "You're so cute!" Skull cried out. "Why are you here little buddy?"

The octopus clung tighter to his side and squeezed his ribs enough to be almost painful. "Okay," Skull let out a wheeze. "Got it. You can let go now!"

The small octopus searched Skull's face before relenting. Skull chuckled airily, "You're a smart thing, aren't you?"

The pair floated in peace for a while before the Cloud broke the weighted silence. "You act sort of like Leon. He's a chameleon who is partnered with my Sun." The octopus gave him a confused look. "Sorry, I'll show you. I'm a Cloud so my Flames are different, but you'll know what I'm talking about."

Weak Cloud Flames lit the dark sea around them, flickering intermittently. The octopus reached a tentacle to touch the Flame that was quickly dissipating. "Don't touch buddy," Skull warned. Before he could yank his hand away, a slippery tentacle touched the Flames. A massive spike of Cloud Flames burst outwards, draining the last of Skull's strength, and the octopus rapidly enlarged with am alarmed whistle.

The massive octopus clicked in alarm when Skull slipped under the waves with a weak exhale. A large tentacle pulled Skull to the surface, the last thing he saw, other than the odd octopus, was a hooded figure reaching their hand out to him and yelling something.

XXXXXX

Viper interrupted the hitman with a startled cry, and before anyone could say anything, they disappeared with a wreath of Mist Flames. The Mist was only gone for half a minute when the room was filled with some sort of mutant octopus that was carrying their Cloud.

Reborn was at a loss for words and stood still trying to comprehend what the _hell_ a giant octopus was doing here. Colonello was thinking along the same line as he grasped his rifle and sputtered weak curses. Verde on the other hand was very unprepared for the insanity that came his way.

"How is that thing breathing!" Verde screeched as he ducked behind a flipped chair near the Sun. "What. Just, I mean why?"

Viper materialised in front of the huge sea-creature and gave it a stern look. "Down," they ordered and took Skull into their arms.

The three elements watched as the creature lowered their Cloud gently before huddling in a corner and letting out distressed clicks and chirps. Upon seeing Skull, Verde pulled himself together (still not looking at the octopus) and tugged Viper out of the room.

"Wait!" Colonello cried futilely. "What do we do with the octopus?"

Reborn eyed the large creature up. "Normally, I would say eat it but look at it."

Colonello didn't spot what his Sun found so interesting. "It's a massive octopus that's defying the laws of natural. What else can there possibly be to it!"

"You're an idiot," Reborn scoffed. " _Why_ is it a massive octopus? Use your head for once!"

Colonello scrutinised the octopus, "Is that… Are those traces of Skull's Flames?"

"Finally," Reborn sighed. "He's bonded with the octopus, it's the same as Leon and I." The aforementioned lizard crept over the hitman's hat to poke his tongue out.

The Rain twirled on his heels and marched out the door. "I am not paid enough to deal with this."

Reborn gave a bark of laughter. "You're not paid full stop."

"Shut up," Colonello pouted. "I'm going to see how Skull's doing."

Reborn waved a hand in acknowledgement and focused his attention on the now-shrinking octopus. He tutted, "What am I going to do with you?"

XXXXXX

Skull woke to the sound of vicious cursing and the all-around sounds of chaos. Where was he? Irritated eyes opened while dripping tears and revealed the ceiling of the medical room he was so familiar with. It took a moment to register the world wasn't swaying anymore and he was pleasantly warm. Flushes of heat surged from his toes to his ears and back again.

"You awake?" A voice whispered above him.

Skull hummed hoarsely. "Yeah. You got me?"

"Viper dragged your dumb ass out of the sea," The voice- no, Reborn said.

"She mad at me?" The Cloud asked guiltily.

Reborn snorted quietly, "Damn right she's mad at you. What were you thinking Skull?"

"I wasn't," He admitted.

The hitman gave an exhausted sigh. Shuffling sounds were made before the blankets were pulled back and he was joined by Reborn. "Go back to sleep."

Skull nodded tiredly, "Okay." This wasn't the time to be arguing and he was sleepy.

From the side table, the octopus watched from its hastily arranged tank. It clung to the glass as it guarded its friend from any who seek to harm him.


End file.
